Signal oscillation is a common phenomena in electronic circuits. Such signal oscillation may be purposefully created by circuit designers, such as in the case of a clock signal or crystal oscillator, for use as a timing signal or control signal in a digital circuit. Other signal oscillations, however, are generated unintentionally during circuit operation, and, in many instances, are undesirable or even detrimental to the intended circuit operation. For example, an impedance mismatch in a telecommunications system may cause signal oscillations due to signal reflections, resulting in an unwanted echo during voice communication.
Other examples include ideal diode applications, such as redundant power systems, where sudden changes in input or output conditions cause an abrupt current change within a switching circuit. Such abrupt changes in current may cause parasitic inductance and capacitance in the switching circuit to charge and discharge each other in an alternate fashion, resulting in an unwanted resonant signal oscillation. Left unchecked, such signal oscillation may propagate through the control loop of the switching circuit and cause instability, severely limiting the usefulness of the circuit.
Because of the unpredictable nature of such occurrences, it would be desirable to provide circuits and methods which can detect and suppress such oscillations when they occur, allowing the switching circuit to remain stable and operational despite changing input or output conditions.